Lee Ranaldo: ‘Sonic Youth’s future is up in the air’

Sonic Youth guitarist Lee Ranaldo has said that the band’s future remains “up in the air”.

Last October, the band’s members Kim Gordon and Thurston Moore announced they were separating after 27 years of marriage and sparked rumours that the band could split up, with their label Matador Records admitting they were “uncertain” of their future plans.

Ranaldo has been vague on the group’s future ever since and has now said that, although nothing has been decided, he and his bandmates are not making plans for new material or live dates.

Speaking to Spinner, Ranaldo said when asked about Sonic Youth’s future: “It’s up in the air. We’re taking a much-needed break and leaving it at that. We’re not saying anything final, but we’re not discussing anything for the future either. We’re just letting it be.”

Ranaldo went on to say that he’s relaxed about the possibility of the band ending as they’ve had “an amazing 30-year run” and that he believes whatever happens in the future, the band’s members will always be “tied to each other”.

He added: “Our lives and careers are so intertwined that, even if nothing is happening as far as new recordings and new performances, we’ll be tied to each other. We’ve had an amazing 30-year run. We’ll see what the future holds.”

Ranaldo released his ninth solo LP ‘Between The Times And The Tides’ in March.